Aston Villa boss Tim Sherwood insists Joe Cole can have a role to play in their survival fight.

Cole has been struck down with hamstring problems and has been restricted to five starts and five sub appearances since joining at the start of the season.

Sherwood said: "He's very close. He's not broken by any means and he's got great experience.

"You'll hear me say this a lot but I like players on the pitch that actually affect the game and I think Joe can do that.

"He can score and he can assist. I don't like players who are just out there, I like them to affect football matches."